


Home For Good

by Larry_Klaine_Stylinson



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Army, Army!Louis, Cute, Fluff, M/M, Marriage Proposal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-06
Updated: 2013-05-06
Packaged: 2017-12-10 15:12:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,947
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/787452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Larry_Klaine_Stylinson/pseuds/Larry_Klaine_Stylinson
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Louis has been away in the army for ages, and Harry can't help but worry. When he gets a knock at the door late one night, he expects the worst, but is greeted by a pleasant surprise.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Home For Good

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written as a prompt fill on Tumblr.
> 
> I know pretty much nothing about the army, so I tried not to really mention it too much, but if I got anything wrong in the little that I did mention, please forgive me. I am a lowly human teen who runs a One Direction blog, what do you want from me?

Louis had been away in the army for what felt like a lifetime now. Often times he wasn't in the heat of battle. He was off in the barracks somewhere, tending to other things that needed to be taken care of. He still wasn't in a very low-risk area, however.

He knew Harry missed him. They wrote each other letters as often as they could, but sometimes Louis was too busy. Sometimes he had other soldiers to look after. Sometimes he was thrust out onto the field with a gun in his hand, and he wouldn't have time to write for a few weeks. When that happened, Harry would just write him more. He'd wait a bit, and if he got no response, he'd send another letter. Sometimes, by the time Louis got a chance to write, he'd have three or four letters from Harry piled up. He kept them tucked into his pillowcase for safe keeping.

Louis knew Harry worried. He had reason to. And Louis worried about Harry as well. He knew how lonely his boyfriend could get, and he hoped he was taking care of himself.

Luckily, though, Louis had a surprise in store.

000

Harry hadn't heard from Louis in a few weeks now, and he was beginning to grow exceedingly anxious.

No one had been by to tell him that his boyfriend had died in battle, or that a bomb had hit the shelter he was staying in. No one had been by to tell him that Louis was in a coma, or had been terribly wounded. So he knew that Louis was okay. Otherwise, he would have heard something.

That didn't stop him from worrying, though. And worry he did.

It was late at night, around midnight or so, and Harry couldn't sleep. He tried to sleep a lot more these days, passing the time until Louis would finally return for good and never leave his sight for so long again. Sixty two days, nine hours and seven minutes, to be exact.

Harry wasn't sure he could last that long. After two weeks had passed and he hadn't gotten a letter, he'd started having trouble sleeping. He got nightmares sometimes, all his worries coming to fruition in his own mind as he slept.

He was sitting on the sofa, shirtless and wearing thin sweatpants, just so he wasn't entirely naked. He preferred to be naked, really, but when he was feeling so vulnerable already for other reasons, there was a part of him that felt he should stay covered up, and so he did. He had planned to turn the telly on, but instead had ended up sitting there, idly twiddling his thumbs and biting on his lip.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, and Harry jumped.

Who on earth could be coming by at this hour of the night?

Horror hit him as he realized exactly who it could be. Someone had come to tell him that Louis was gone. He was dead, and Harry had lost him forever.

He got up off of the sofa and walked to the door, slowly pulling it open. He had expected men in uniform, but what he had not expected was one specific man in uniform. Namely, Louis.

He was standing there, his deep green camouflage uniform covering his slender body, and he was as beautiful in it as he was last time he'd come for a visit. He didn't get to visit much, but when he did, they made the best of it. He was holding his hat in both of his hands in front of him, and his hair was stuck to his forehead, which had Harry guessing that he'd taken the hat off as an after thought, right after he'd knocked on the door.

All of that had taken merely a split second for Harry to take in, and then he was hurling himself into Louis' arms, happy tears making their way down his cheeks.

"Louis!" He shouted. "Louis, it's you!"

"It's me, Harry." Louis laughed into Harry's ear, his arms wrapped around him tightly.

Harry was immensely thankful for Louis' strength at the moment, because Harry was a lot taller than his boyfriend, and at the moment, his legs had completely given out, a sense of relief and happiness having washed over him and quite honestly knocked him off his feet. The only reason he wasn't lying face first on the ground in a sobbing heap right now was because of Louis' tight hold on him.

"You didn't write. You didn't write for so long, and then there was a knock at the door at this ungodly hour and I thought-"

"Shh." Louis said. "Hush, Harry."

Louis was petting his hair now, peppering kisses all over the top of his head, and Harry was simply crying, holding him tightly in his arms. He'd missed him. Missed how he smelled like vanilla and tea and some sweet smelling fruit, but also smelled a bit like sweat and dirt all at the same time. He just smelled like Louis. No one else in the entire world smelled exactly the way Louis did, Harry was sure of it. He missed Louis' strong arms around him, and Louis' face pressed against his chest. Although, at the moment, Harry's face was pressed to Louis' chest. He could hear his heart beating, a soft thumping beat that sounded like love.

"I missed you so much." Harry said, regaining the use of his legs and pulling himself up, standing in front of Louis and holding his shoulders in a vice grip, part of him fearing that this was all a dream, and if he let go, he'd wake up.

"I missed you, too, Harry."

"How long are you back for?"

"Forever." Louis grinned.

"That's not funny, Lou. You've got two months left." Harry shook his head.

"I'm not joking, Harry. I got early leave."

"Really?!" Harry asked, a wide grin spreading across his face.

"Really, Harry."

Harry threw his arms around Louis again, pulling him in so his face was pressed to Harry's own chest.

"Your heart's beating very quickly, Harry." Louis said, and Harry could hear the smile in his voice. "Promise you won't die on me right after I've gotten back."

"I promise."

Louis pulled away from the embrace then, "You have to pinky swear." He held out his pinky on his right hand.

"I pinky swear, Louis. I'm not dying." He laughed, joining pinkies with Louis.

"Be careful what you promise, Harry." Louis smirked.

And then, right there in the doorway, Louis dropped down on one knee.

At first, Harry had thought he was hurt or something. That he was trying to show Harry some injury he'd received. But then he was reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small, red, velvet box. He opened it, and inside was a shiny silver band that glinted in the moonlight.

"Harry Edward Styles." Louis began, and Harry could feel the tears springing to his eyes already. "You've stuck by my side, even when I couldn't physically be by yours. You've written me hundreds upon hundreds of letters, and if you're anything like me, I know you got a few hand cramps." They both chuckled, and Harry covered his mouth with his hands, small happy sobs slipping out. "You never even considered leaving me for someone closer, or someone who you wouldn't have to worry about every waking moment. And I would have understood-"

"Don't." Harry shook his head. "Don't say you would've understood if I had. You're it for me, Louis."

"Shush." Louis said, laughing. "Don't interrupt me now. You're stealing my thunder."

"Sorry." Harry said, biting his lip and wiping a few tears from his eyes, as they were clouding his vision.

"I would have understood if you had. But I'm so so glad you didn't, Harry. Because when I was out on the field, all I could think about was getting out alive so I could come home to you. When I read your letters, I'd cry. It doesn't matter what you wrote to me about; I always cried. Because I thought of you home alone, and I thought of how much I wanted to be with you. I thought...I thought of how I want to be with you for the rest of my life, and I think I already know your answer, but I don't want to seem cocky." Louis chuckled, a few tears slipping from his eyes now as well. "So, Harry...Will you marry me?"

"Yes." Harry nodded frantically. "Of course. Yes."

Louis' smile was so wide that Harry was afraid his face would split in two. He stood up, wrapping Harry in his arms and squeezing him so tightly that he couldn't breathe. He pulled back and peppered kisses all over Harry's face, and Harry grinned, and Louis kissed his dimples more times than Harry could count. And then finally, Louis stepped back a bit, and Harry held out his hand, and Louis slipped the ring on. Harry watched as the silver band made its way down his finger and into its rightful place, and he was pretty sure he'd never seen anything more beautiful. Until, of course, he looked up and saw Louis smiling at him, his bright blue eyes filled with unshed tears of joy, and Harry remembered that Louis was absolutely the most beautiful thing on the planet.

"You're so beautiful, Lou." Harry whispered.

Louis chuckled, "I was just about to say the same thing about you."

Louis was holding Harry's hand, admiring the ring and how perfect it looked on Harry's finger. Like it was meant to be there. And the only person who ever would have had the right to place it there was Louis. He lifted Harry's hand to his mouth and kissed the ring gently, and then Harry was pulling him inside.

He shut the door behind them, the night air feeling cold against his bare torso, and he pulled Louis close by the waist, leaning down and connecting their lips. They kissed slowly, both of their faces flushed and salty from the tears they had shed, and Harry smiled against Louis' lips as the older of the two played with the ring on the younger's finger, and Louis nibbled Harry's bottom lip with a smirk, and Harry pulled back. He stared into Louis' eyes, and Louis stared back into his, and Harry was certain this was the happiest moment of his life. Because he had Louis back, and he had him back for good, and he had a promise of forever sitting beautifully on his left ring finger.

He dragged Louis to their bedroom, and Louis stripped down to his boxers. They climbed under the covers together, and neither one had to say anything. They knew that neither of them wanted to look away from each other. And so they intertwined their legs and wrapped their arms around each other. They rested their foreheads against each other, and Harry traced lazy patterns into Louis' shoulder blades with his fingers, while Louis held onto Harry for dear life, as if he'd only just now realized that he was back in his presence.

"I love you so much, Louis." Harry whispered. "More than anything."

"And I love you even more than that." Louis said, his breath ghosting over Harry's face.

They were silent after that. No more words necessary that night. They lay there, looking deeply into each other's eyes, foreheads pressed firmly together. The last thing they saw before they each fell asleep was the other's face, and that was how it would be until their dying day.


End file.
